Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

These young people leave school, go straight into work, get a meagre wage, often not a very good wage, and start paying their tax so the likes of Senator McKim and Senator Di Natale can go to university. I begrudge no doctor whatever they earn. Having recently been through the hospital system, I have the greatest admiration for doctors and nurses. But, if Senator Di Natale were any sort of a doctor, he would have, if he had chosen to, been making a small fortune in that profession—and good on him! But it's only fair to the other Australians who paid their taxes for Senator Di Natale's, Senator McKim's and Senator Watt's educations that they should pay it back under Labor's HECS scheme.

I have a niece who left school and started as an apprentice hairdresser. She happily did that; she didn't want to go to university. She's a very good hairdresser. She did her apprenticeship, again, on very meagre wages, but paying tax so that the likes of Senator McKim could go to university. She paid that tax and now she's become a hairdresser, earning a bit more and paying more tax. I think that when we have these debates it's important to understand that young people are not the only ones at university. In the committee stage I will ask the minister for these statistics, but I would guess that there are more young people leaving school who don't go to university than those who do. These senators rail on about university education. As I said, I'm a great supporter of young people going to university; they do a wonderful job in society. Again, I mention what a great job the YLNP, the Young Liberal National Party in Queensland, do, not just in student politics and not just in contributing their arguments but in helping people like me and the Liberal National Party in Queensland to devise policies that keep young people in mind.

I won't delay the Senate much more on this particular bill, but I do ask senators that when they carry on, as we hear Senator Di Natale carrying on, to remember that there are many young Australians who do not have the opportunity they had of going to university. They've paid their taxes, happily, and they would happily pay for the likes of Senator McKim and Senator Di Natale to go to university. But we have to bear in mind the contribution they make, and the fairness, I might say, of Labor's Higher Education Contribution Scheme of a decade or so ago. I think that's fair. I do ask that when senators are debating higher education they keep in mind that there are many young people, who, for various reasons, never have the opportunity of participating in higher education.